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Software for interactive data visualization and analysis

Tools for visualization and exploration of (large) scientific datasets

The software listed below is available on the RZG visualization cluster, as well as on most Linux machines (execute module avail to get an up-to-date list).

VisIt

VisIt is a free [and open-source], interactive parallel visualization and graphical analysis tool for viewing scientific data on Unix and PC platforms. Users can quickly generate visualizations from their data, animate them through time, manipulate them, and save the resulting images for presentations. VisIt  can be used to visualize scalar and vector fields defined on two- and three-dimensional (2D and 3D) structured and unstructured meshes. VisIt was designed to handle very large data set sizes in the terascale range and yet can also handle small data sets in the kilobyte range. (taken from the VisIt website)

ParaView

ParaView is an open-source, multi-platform application designed to visualize data sets of size varying from small to very large. ParaView runs on distributed and shared memory parallel as well as single processor systems and has been succesfully tested on Windows, Mac OS X, Linux and various Unix workstations, clusters and supercomputers. (taken from the ParaView website)

VAPOR

VAPOR is the Visualization and Analysis Platform for Ocean, Atmosphere, and Solar Researchers. VAPOR provides: a visual data discovery environment tailored towards the specialized needs of the geosciences CFD community, a desktop solution capable of handling terascale size data sets, advanced interactive 3D visualization tightly coupled with quantitative data analysis, support for multi-variate, time-varying data, close coupling with RSI's powerful interpretive data language, IDL, ... .VAPOR runs on most UNIX and Windows systems equipped with modern 3D graphics cards (taken from the VAPOR website).

IDL

The Interactive Data Language, is a commercial package for the interactive analysis and visualization of scientific and engeneering data, developed by ITT, Visual Information Solutions.

Avizo (formerly Amira)

Avizo is a commercial software platform for visualizing and analyzing multidimensional scientific data

Voreen

Voreen is an open source volume rendering engine which allows interactive visualization of volumetric data sets.

Libraries and Tools

SILO

A library for reading and writing a wide variety of scientific data to binary files. Silo is the recommended data format for the VisIt visualization tool.

VTK

The Visualization Toolkit (VTK) is an open-source, freely available software system for 3D computer graphics, image processing and visualization.

NCAR Graphics

A library of graphics and data analysis routines which can be included in a Fortran or C program.

Grace (Xmgrace)

Grace is a WYSIWYG 2D plotting tool for the X Window System and M*tif.

gnuplot

gnuplot is a powerful command-line and script oriented plotting tool.

  • Website: www.gnuplot.info
  • Documentation
  • gnuplot is installed locally on Linux and AIX machines. On amd64_sles10/amd64_sles11, a recent version can be accessed via "module load gnuplot".

Origin

Origin is a data analysis and graphing software for scientists and engineers. The software is supported on Windows only. The latest available version is Origin Pro 8. There is a network license available at RZG. You can install the software from here.

GNU R

R is a free software environment for statistical computing and graphics.

  • Website: www.r-project.org
  • R is installed on the visualization cluster. On other Linux machines, it is available via the command "module load R".

Special-purpose Software

Splotch

A (non-interactive), shared-memory-parallel ray tracer for SPH (Smoothed-particle Hydrodynamics) data.

Blender

Blender is an open source, cross platform suite of tools for 3D creation.

POV-Ray

POV-Ray is a freeware multi-platform ray-tracing package.

VMD

VMD (Visual Molecular Dynamics) is a molecular graphics software.

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